For the first time, he knew night for what it was: the shadow of the earth itself, cast against the sky. (Location 178)
Kudda shrugged. ‘We live on the road to heaven; all the work that we do is to extend it further. When we leave the tower, we will take the upward ramp, not the downward.’ (Location 200)
It was clear now why Yahweh had not struck down the tower, had not punished men for wishing to reach beyond the bounds set for them: for the longest journey would merely return them to the place whence they’d come. Centuries of their labor would not reveal to them any more of Creation than they already knew. Yet through their endeavor, men would glimpse the unimaginable artistry of Yahweh’s work, in seeing how ingeniously the world had been constructed. By this construction, Yahweh’s work was indicated, and Yahweh’s work was concealed. (Location 420)
He considers intelligence to be a means, while I view it as an end in itself. (Location 947)
In 1770, Captain Cook’s ship Endeavour ran aground on the coast of Queensland, Australia. While some of his men made repairs, Cook led an exploration party and met the aboriginal people. One of the sailors pointed to the animals that hopped around with their young riding in pouches, and asked an aborigine what they were called. The aborigine replied, ‘Kanguru.’ From then on Cook and his sailors referred to the animals by this word. It wasn’t until later that they learned it meant ‘What did you say?’ (Location 1432)
Tags: language, captaincook
Note: .captaincook .language